Dream a Little Dream
by dS-Tiff
Summary: Toby is there for Happy whenever she needs him, even if it is the middle of the night. A short, but sweet Quintis scene. (Additional tags: humour, comfort.)


**_This little Quintis scene is set just after S04 E05 Sci Hard. It just popped into my head, I hope you enjoy it._**

DREAM A LITTLE DREAM

"No! Nooooo!"

Happy Quinn sat bolt upright in bed, her own scream still echoing in her head. She blinked hard, desperate for her eyes to get used to the dark knowing the familiar sights of her bedroom would ground her. Her heart was pounding and she could feel sweat running down her temples as she gasped for breath.

"You…er, you OK, darlin'?"

Happy's head snapped round towards Toby's croaky, half-asleep voice. For a split second she'd forgotten he was there in bed beside her. She'd forgotten they were married, forgotten she was not alone any more. She tried desperately to control her breathing.

"Yeah, just, um…" she began, but she couldn't finish her sentence, her throat was too dry.

Toby rubbed his eyes and sat up. He switched on the tiny lamp on his bedside table. The dim orange glow lit the room with an eerie luminescence. "You're not OK. You're trembling," he said with concern.

"You're naked," she observed, trying to deflect his concern.

Toby loved to fall asleep naked after they'd made love. Happy usually slipped on a nightshirt and tonight was no exception, but he preferred the feeling of sleeping naked next to her. He watched her chest heave under the striped cotton as she panted hard and made a mental note of all the signals she was subconsciously giving him. He'd become quite the expert at reading her, but right now he was getting confusing messages that he couldn't quite piece together. He decided to start with the obvious.

"Nightmare?" he offered, reaching out and tenderly touching her forearm. She still hadn't made eye contact with him and that worried him. She'd had a few nightmares over the last few weeks, but nothing to cause him any concern. This one was different, even without his skills he would have realised that. "Talk to me," he urged and he moved his hand to her shoulder.

"I need the bathroom," she replied curtly and she shook herself free from his grasp.

Toby let out a slow breath and watched her slide out of bed. He waited patiently for a few minutes until she returned, using the time to decide on the best approach to get her to open up to him. He knew Happy better than anyone. "Just tell me what the dream was about," he said, pulling back the covers for her.

Happy got back into bed. "Doesn't matter. It was just a stupid nightmare," she replied. "Switch the light off."

"No, you don't get to do that to me," replied Toby, as sternly as he dared. "I love you and I can help you with this. Now just tell me what you remember about the dream."

Happy sighed and laid her head back on the pillow and stared at the ceiling. "I don't want to talk about it, Toby. It was… it was… weird."

Toby lay down next to her, propping himself up on one elbow. "Weird dreams are perfectly normal," he replied, gazing lovingly at her and acknowledging – not for the first time - that he was the happiest man in the world. "The human brain…"

"I don't need a lecture," Happy snapped, interrupting him before he could finish his sentence.

"Oh my god!" exclaimed Toby. Suddenly the pieces had fallen into place. "You had a sex dream!" His face twisted in to a grin as relief washed over him. This he understood, this he could help her with.

Happy turned her head to look at him. "Don't laugh at me," she snarled. "It freaked me out, OK?"

"Again, perfectly normal," he replied, forcing the grin from his lips and sitting himself back up. "You do realise sex dreams aren't actually sex related, right?"

"Well that's just dumb," she replied, her voice cracking with emotion.

"It's OK," Toby tried to reassure her, realising she was still very shaken up. "It's OK. Take a deep breath, nice and slow." He rested his hand just below Happy's chest and felt her diaphragm contract and relax again as she followed his instruction.

"There," he said softly. "If you don't want to tell me the details, that's fine, but…"

"It was Walter," said Happy, suddenly. "There, satisfied?"

Toby wasn't the least bit surprised at her revelation, he'd already worked out who had featured in the dream. "It doesn't matter who it was," he replied, calmly. "I told you, this has nothing to do with sex so don't feel weird about it."

"I can't help it," replied Happy. She took another deep breath before speaking again. "I'm totally freaked out, OK? There was the sex and then…. then there was an explosion at a power station that we couldn't stop… and then there was the baby…"

"Oh, OK," nodded Toby. "This is starting to make sense now."

"Not to me it isn't," said Happy. "I don't want Walter's baby, I want yours… ours." She closed her eyes tightly, trying to shake the lingering images from her dream which were still refusing to leave her mind.

"I know," said Toby. "But your subconscious is taking all the thoughts you're having about starting a family - all the anxiety, all the anticipation – and representing those thoughts in that bizarre way that only your dreams can."

"I'm not anxious," retorted Happy. "My sub-conscious is wrong."

"Maybe anxious isn't the right word," conceded Toby. "Concerned, maybe."

Happy sighed. "I guess…I just don't want to screw it up. Parenting, I mean," she admitted.

"It's OK to be a little apprehensive," Toby tried to reassure her. "But I need to you talk to me about how you're feeling. We're in this together, remember." He gently stroked her hair with the back of his hand.

"But I'm not even pregnant yet so my subconscious is jumping the gun, don't you think?" Happy answered with a shrug. "And anyway, what the hell has all this got to do with Walter?"

"Nothing," replied Toby. "Other than that he's someone who is in our lives, someone we both care about. It's not uncommon for dreams to feature people you know in abstract situations."

"Yeah, well, this was pretty abstract," noted Happy. "I feel… I feel dirty, or something. Guilty, maybe. I would never sleep with Walter, you know that, right?"

Toby couldn't help but laugh. "I know," he replied and he kissed her lips tenderly. "Dream interpretation is a far from accurate science," he explained. "But there are enough theories for me to know your dream doesn't mean you're harbouring a secret desire to get down and dirty with One Ninety Seven."

Happy swallowed hard. "He took the baby," she said, almost under her breath. "I tried to tell him to stop, but he wouldn't listen to me, or he couldn't hear me. You know how in a dream you're yelling at someone, but they ignore you? It was like that."

"OK," Toby replied slowly. "That's a little concerning. Do you feel that I'm not giving you enough attention? That's one interpretation of dreams where you're being ignored."

"God, no!" exclaimed Happy, pushing herself into a sitting position. "You give me plenty of attention."

"Perhaps that's it?" pondered Toby. "I love you, darlin', but if you want me to back off a little, I can do that." He tried not to look hurt as he ran over the possibilities in his mind. Was all of this his fault? Was he making her anxious about becoming a mother? He didn't think he'd done anything to make her uneasy, but perhaps he'd misread her after all? "I know I can be a little intense sometimes," he began, but he didn't get chance to finish his sentence.

Without saying anything, Happy took Toby's face in her hands and kissed him passionately, startling her husband. "There," she said when she finally released him. "If I want you to back off I'll tell you, dummy."

Toby smiled and kissed her again. "Promise me?" he asked, running his fingers through her hair.

"Promise," replied Happy. "Now get your naked ass over here and spoon with me."

Toby smiled and flicked off the light. As much as he was ready for another round of baby-making, he realised that wasn't what she needed right now. He knew how honoured he was that Happy allowed him to see her at her most vulnerable and he wasn't about to do anything to jeopardise that trust. He snuggled up close to her and draped his arm over her waist. "It's gonna be OK," he whispered.

Happy entwined her fingers with his. "I know," she replied, closing her eyes and finally relaxing enough to start drifting off to sleep. "I know."

THE END.


End file.
